The chest, shoulders and biceps are among the major muscle groups of the torso. The chest and biceps are located on the front side, while the shoulders wrap around from front to back. You can effectively develop the mass of these muscles by dedicating a workout to each group. The advantage of this three-day workout is you can focus all your energy on one group at a time, giving maximum stimulation to the fibers that make up each muscle.

Day One -- Chest Workout

The pec major primarily makes up the musculature of the chest region. During your chest workout, you should do two chest pressing exercises, one chest fly exercise and one chest crossover exercise. You should vary the angles for each exercise to emphasize each of the three parts of the pec major: upper, middle, and lower. Use an incline weight bench for upper pec emphasis, a flat bench to best target the middle, and a decline bench to emphasize the lower part of the pec. When you perform the chest crossover exercise, you are not lying on a bench, but are in a standing position. However, you can still emphasize each part of the pecs by manipulating the angle in which your arms are brought across your torso. The higher up your arms are, the more you work your upper pecs. The lower they are, the more you emphasize the other parts of the pecs.

Day Two -- Shoulder Workout

Similar to the pec major, the shoulders, specifically the deltoid, is made up of three parts. These are the front, side and rear deltoid. You can focus on the front deltoid by doing the front arm raise. To focus on the side and rear deltoid, perform the side arm raise in a standing and bent-over position, respectively. The other muscle of the shoulder complex that you should work to build mass is the upper trapezius. The best exercise for this muscle is the shrug. Due to the small range of motion, you will be able to use a heavy load.

Day Three -- Biceps Exercises

The biceps has an inner short part and an outer long part. The standing biceps curl and incline biceps curl are among the best exercises for the biceps, and you should do both during your biceps workout. In addition to training your biceps, you should emphasize the brachialis, which is another major muscle located in the arm region. It significantly contributes to arm musculature and helps push your biceps up when you flex your arms. You work this muscle anytime you bend your elbow, such as during biceps curls, However, to best develop this muscle, you need to do the preacher curl and the overhead biceps curl.

Set and Repetition Count

During each of the aforementioned three workouts, it is imperative you utilize the following set and rep count: three to five sets per exercise and eight to 12 repetitions per set. This set/rep count is highly effective for building muscle mass safely. You should go to muscle failure, or close to it, when using this rep count. To come close to failure, use the heaviest workload possible that allows you to do no less than eight reps and no more than 12.

References

About the Author

Richard Choueiri is a fitness and nutrition expert and the author of "The Human Statue Workout." He began writing professionally in 2007 and his work has been featured in Bodybuilding.com and "Physique Magazine." Choueiri studied exercise science and nutritional science at Rutgers University. He holds an American College of Sports Medicine CPT, and a National Exercise and Sports Trainers Association CMMACC.